Florian Völker
Florian Völker is a main series driver currently driving for Scuderia Ferrari in the 2015 season. He is the only driver to have won 3 world championships in tier 1 and back-to-back championships in 2010 and 2011 with Red Bull Racing. He made his OC debut with Toro Rosso in the 2008 where he shone as one of the brightest rising stars within the competition. Widely regarded as one of the finest drivers to ever race in the Top Tier of GP4, he has garnered praise for his sometimes dominant and consistent performances and his ability to comprehensively outperform teammates in the same machinery over the course of a season. Volker is also the holder of many OC records. His Three Championship wins (2010, 2011, 2013) mean he ranks as the most successful driver in terms of Championships, with Joseph Willows his closest challenger on Two (2006 & 2008). To that end, he is also the only driver in OC History to have won back-to-back drivers championships. History 2008 - Breakthrough Year Debuting in 2008 with the fledgling Toro Rosso outfit, he immediately starred by finishing 6th on his debut. A run of points finishes would follow, in that time he continuously outperformed his teammate, Miklos Gal, who was already in his second season. The 2008 Italian Grand Prix was when Volker and Gal rose to stratospheric levels of stardom. Gal miraculously qualified on Pole, Volker was 3rd as the top 4 was comprised in its entirety by Toro Rosso and Red Bull. Volker would drive without incident and held his position to the flag for his first podium finish whilst teammate Gal would go on to take his maiden chequered flag. Volker, however, refused to be outdone by his teammate. Back-to-back podiums at the final rounds of the season in China and Brazil, meant he finished a remarkable 7th overall, and best of the rest behind the already-established top 3 of McLaren, Ferrari and BMW. Most importantly, it ensured he finished on almost twice the amount of points Gal had accumulated over the season. The lure of Renault power and the promise of a highly competitive package in 2009 was too great to resist, and a drive at Toro Rosso's senior team, Red Bull, beckoned the following year. 2009 - Fully Fledged Frontrunner Volker got off to the best possible start in Australia, putting the car on Pole for his first front row start. However, thanks to strategy he would finish second, with former teammate Miklos Gal, now at Brawn GP, taking his second GP win. The race is remembered for the controversial circumstances surrounding On-Track Race Winner, Alex Southgate, who received a time penalty for his part in a collision involving Joseph Willows. Following absolute domination by Brawn in the first 5 rounds of the season. Volker arrived in Monaco still chasing that elusive first Grand Prix win. Pole in Qualifying secured a trademark dominant win for the German, his first in the sport. Volker would win again for the second time in Hungary, in a season where he eventually finished 3rd in the championship behind the dominant Brawn GP cars. Former Teammate Gal was the eventual champion that season. 2010 & 2011 - Back to Back World Champion 2010 saw Volker rejuvenated and in full control. With a car that was built fully to his desires and specifications, he won the opening round in Bahrain and then won two rounds later in Malaysia. He finished on the podium 8 times out of the next 10 races, included a third win of the year in Valencia, to hold a then record points lead going into the halfway point of the season. It would be this relentless consistency that would pay dividends come the end of the season. Two retirements were sandwiched either side of a fourth utterly dominant win of the year in Singapore. Thanks to his trademark consistency and routine bad luck for his teammate James Willows, this meant the Red Bull driver need only consistently score in the final rounds of the season and he would win his first world title. Volker made good on his chance, 8th place and a single point in Abu Dhabi meant Volker was crowned champion for the first time in his career, in only his third full season competing. 2011 would prove to be a continuation of the previous year. Volker was classified on the podium every time he finished for the first 9 rounds of the season, including one win. Volker's trademark consistency bore through for the remainder of the year with the young German taking several podiums and another win in Korea. The championship went down to the wire, but a second place in Abu Dhabi was enough as his teammate James Willows failed to outscore him. 2011 is regarded as one of Volker's finest seasons. He won the title with just 2 victories, the lowest amount of wins from an eventual champion in their championship year. It was even more of an achievement considering his teammate won 4 races and McLaren's Evan Byrne won 6. However, 12 podiums to Byrne and Willows' Eight was more than enough to win the championship on outright consistency rather than brute strength. 2012 - A Tough Season Before the season started, Volker was reunited with his former teammate Miklos Gal who had severed ties from McLaren following an indifferent 2 season spell. Red Bull were quoted as saying they had the best pairing currently in the sport. It was the first time since the infamous Willows/Maata partnership in 2008, to have a team comprising of two world champions. It seemed as though 2012 would continue in the same way as the previous two seasons. Volker won the first two Grand Prix's and was runner up in the third. But these highs were shattered by 6 rounds of torrid luck and frustration. Mid-table finishes in Bahrain and Spain were followed by a run of 4 consecutive retirements. Two podiums on home soil in Germany and Hungary, broke his poor form, but a couple of midtable finishes followed as the title looked to slip out of his reach. He won in Korea to restore some dignity to his season, but it would not be enough as the title was secured by a resurgent McLaren and their Danish Hotshot Viggo Holst. Whilst 2 wins won him the title the previous year, 3 wins was good enough only for fourth in 2012. Despite all of this misfortune, Volker still managed to get the better of teammate Gal over the course of the season. GP4OC Results *Season in Progress. Category:Drivers